OBJECTIVE:Design a window / door combination which addresses the
security requirements of a building situated in a heavily wooded area (wild
fires)
and far away
from the protection of local law enforcement.

The built-in rolling shutters are to be remote controlled in order to create
a fire barrier and protect the glazing from direct fire exposure.

Some window units are built with remote controlled motors for ventilation on
comand.

All doors to be built in reinforced aluminum and with high-end security locking
mechanisms.

Before the fire

The firestarter

After the fire

After viewing the other parts
of Cedar Ridge Road, I can say that no other house experienced more
fire than ours, and three of those burned. The fire fighters said
it probably would not have survived without the fire safety measures
we built into the house. Numerous fire fighters said it was the best
prepared house for fire that they had ever seen.

The things that made it fire safe were:
- Steel roof
- Aluminum shutters
- Hardi-Board siding
- Concrete and steel decks
- Vent openings in soffit and ridgeline of roof less than 1/4" no
vegetation within 5 feet of the house (except two trees we hadn't
removed)

There are publications from the US Forest Service that describe
the importance of window coverings. Wooden siding is quite slow
to catch fire even in extreme conditions. They say that a more important
problem is heat entering windows and igniting interior things like
drapes. Another problem with windows is that they crack from the
heat. Windows larger than 2 x 2 feet are prone to collapse when
they crack, allowing the full heat of the fire to enter the house.
Shutters protect from these problems by keeping the heat out of
the house and by preventing the window glass from breaking.